Means for displaying automobile-numbers.



B. STODDARD.

MEANS FOR DISPLAYING AUTOMOBILE NUMBERS.

APPLIOATION FILED JUNII5,1912.

1,071,821 atented Sept. 2, 1913.

IN VEN TOR,

SSES WI TNE Z ffov/ww.

Mam ATTORNEY COLUMBIA PLANOORAPII C0,.WA5HINOTOM v.1.

UN I E ELGIN STODDARD, OF SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA.

MEANS FOR DISPLAYING AUTOMOBILE-NUMBERS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

atented Sept. .2, 1913.

Application filed Jane 5, 1912. Serial No. 701,742.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ELGIN Sroonann, a citizen of the United States, residing at San Francisco, in the county of San Francisco and State of California, have invented new and useful Improvements in Means for Displaying ihlltUTflObllG'NUITIlJOIS, of which the tollowing is a specification.

The present invention relates to improved means for displaying the license numbers of automobiles.

To discourage reckless and too rapid driving of automobiles it is of great importance that a by-stander should be able to observe with certainty the license number of the automobile, after the machine has passed him, so that he can therefrom ascertain the owner of the machine and the person responsible for such reckless or rapid driving. The means at present provided, so far as I am aware, for atl'ording this intor mation at night are imperfect, because, in the first place, the registry numbers are displayed too obscurely, and, secondly, said numbers are arranged at right angles to the direction of travel of the machine, so that, even it otherwise distinct, they cannot be clearly seen until the machine had progressed a considerable distance past the ol )server, and then they are generally too remote to be easily legible.

()ne object of the present invention is to provide means for displaying the license number which will be free from these detects.

A further object of the invention is to provide means whereby an observer ahead of the machine may be apprised whether or not the machine has its tail lamp lighted and its license number at the rear of the machine illuminated.

In the accompanying drawing, Figure 1 a broken plan view of an automobile equipped with my invention; Fig. 2 is a similar view showing a modification of the invention.

Referring to the drawing, 1 indicates an automobile, on one side of which and to the rear above the mud guard, is secured a casing Q, in the trout end of which is a lamp 3, a tor 'ardly directed lens 4 being secured in front of the lamp 3. Said casing has an oblique side 5 which supports rcarwardly and ouhvardly facing numerals (3 in posi tion to be directly illun'linated by rear- 'ardly radiating rays from said lamp.

7 indicates a tail lamp also carried by said casing. This tail lamp may be omitted, as in the umdilication illustrated in Fig. 2, in which the numerals are placed on an outwardly and rearwardly facing plate 8, and are illuminated by rays ol the lamp 2-3 rellocted from a reflector 9.

In combination, a casing, a lamp, near one end thereof, said casing being provided with means arranged to permit the passage of rays radiating forwardly from the lamp, and having a laterally extending portion formed to support rearwardly and outwardly facing nun'ierals in position to be directly illuminated by rearwzurdly radiating rays from said lamp.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presence of two subscrilr ing witnesses.

IGLGTN SIX )DDARD.

\Vitnesses:

Funnels M. \Vnuurr, D. B. Rrcnanus.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G." 

